We Tested ChatGPT Ads. Here’s What We Found.
A few weeks ago, we wrote about OpenAI’s introduction of CPC advertising and the launch of its self-serve Ads Manager platform.
Since then, we’ve spent some time exploring the beta version ourselves.
The platform is still early, but a few things stood out right away.
No Business Manager (Yet)
Unlike Google Ads and Meta Ads, ChatGPT Ads does not currently have a centralized business manager.
Each advertiser requires its own ad account, although multiple users can be granted access to that account.
This will likely change over time, but for now, account management is fairly basic.
Geographic Targeting Is Limited
Currently, advertisers can target at the country level:
- United States
- Canada
- Australia
- New Zealand
There are no options for state, province, city, ZIP code, postal code, or radius targeting. Although we can target DMAs such as the Baltimore Area.
For franchise and multi-location brands, that is an important limitation to keep in mind. Many paid search for franchises strategies rely heavily on local targeting, making this one of the biggest gaps in the platform today.
Context Matters More Than Audiences
The biggest difference we noticed was how targeting works.
Instead of selecting demographics, interests, or audience segments, advertisers provide what OpenAI calls “Context Hints.”
Think of them as guidelines that help ChatGPT understand where your product or service is relevant.
Advertisers identify related topics, keywords, services, and conversation themes. The platform then determines when an ad may be useful within a conversation.
There is currently no demographic targeting available.
In many ways, it feels less like audience targeting and more like conversation targeting.
Optimization Is Still Basic
Campaign objectives are currently limited to:
- Reach
- Clicks
More advanced conversion-focused bidding and optimization options are not yet available in the beta platform.
That is not unusual for a new advertising channel, but it does mean performance marketers will have fewer levers to pull than they are accustomed to in Google Ads or Meta.
What We’re Watching
The platform feels a bit like the early days of social advertising.
The foundation is there, but many of the features advertisers rely on today have not arrived yet.
What makes ChatGPT Ads interesting is not necessarily what it can do today. It is where the platform appears to be heading.
The shift toward conversational advertising creates a very different environment than traditional search or social media, and it will be interesting to see how targeting, measurement, and optimization evolve over the next year.
The Enspire Perspective
We are not viewing ChatGPT Ads as a replacement for existing advertising channels.
What we do see is a new platform that is beginning to carve out its own role in the digital advertising landscape.
As with any emerging channel, there is value in testing early, understanding how it works, and paying attention as new capabilities are introduced.
For now, our biggest takeaway is simple:
ChatGPT Ads is still in its infancy, but it is developing quickly. We will continue testing, sharing what we learn, and evaluating where it may create opportunities for our clients.